1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inverter device that converts DC electrical power into AC electrical power.
2. Description of Related Art
Inverter devices that convert DC power into AC power using switching elements such as IGBTs or MOSFETs are widely utilized in the prior art. With an inverter device of this type, flyback diodes are connected in inverse parallel with the switching elements, in order to protect the circuitry from back electromotive forces generated during switching.
In Patent Document #1 (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication H10-93085), for an IGBT package in which a plurality of IGBT chips and a plurality of flyback diode chips are connected in parallel, there is disclosed a technique of preventing local concentrations of current or of heat by arranging these chips in a dispersed manner.
However, with a method of arrangement for flyback diodes such as described in the above Patent Document #1, since the gaps between mutually adjacent chips are narrow, accordingly there is a possibility that it is not possible to dissipate beat from the flyback diodes to a sufficient extent.